wasps

[Cuckmere couple]

was just down at garden hives and saw a single wasp enter a strong colony with no apparent resistance

last time that happened i ended up with a problem

its single brood so no downstairs chamber to lurk in

it is pouring with rain...

problem?

 

[jenkinsbrynmair]

No

 

[Cuckmere couple]

ta

 

[SDM]

Early or late in the day or when the weather keeps your bees inside, wasps get a free pass at the entrance. How much joy they get inside the hive depends on bee numbers

 

[Parsonage Bees]

I'm still seeing wasps dissecting bees under the hive entrance and the thorax carried away. So still feeding larva. We haven't had a frost yet.

Dead and injured wasps and bees are the casualties of fights.

 

[Smallbeehive]

Had wasps around the hive all day for the last 2 weeks the bees have started to to get very aggressive towards them and started to kill them, where as before they weren't. I am now seeing dead or dying wasps out the front of hive and lots of fights and what looks like some wasps desperate to get away but bees clinging to their legs or wings and holding them until they have pretty much disabled them.

This video below was taken Tuesday and I reckon I could film this scenario taking place at least ten times a day at the moment. This one had tried to get in a few times and had already been got at by several more bees before I started filming and it ended up thrown off of the landing board once it was pretty much disabled and died soon after.

https://youtu.be/hmOK8l4Z89w

 

[rampino]

Hi smallbeehive, amazing bit of video! There is a wasps nest in a compost heap quite close to my hives and as a precaution I treated it with water plus detergent poured in the entrance through a long piece of pipe. It seemed to have killed at least some of them. I was hesitating to use chemicals. Where in London are you btw?

 

[masterBK]

honeybee terminating a wasp

 

[Smallbeehive]

2v1 yesterday https://youtu.be/Ct4oaCu5gNo

Have noticed the wasps seem less of a threat now it's colder and just trying their luck, occasionally some sneak in past the guards as less bees at the entrance now but are soon ejected and man handled away from the hive.

 

[XYZ]

I noticed a wasp come and visit while I was inspecting. Seemed big too.
Is that normal this time of year?

 

[Erichalfbee]

Yes
Queen

 

[Millet]

I noticed a wasp come and visit while I was inspecting. Seemed big too.
Is that normal this time of year?

In warm weather yes..i pulled a inspection tray out today and a big fat Queen Wasp shot out..each season throws a different wild card at us..she was eating chewed fondant on the inspection tray that the bees had dropped..she will have got her sugar fix for now but the next few weeks of cold weather will stop her in her tracks..

 

[Repwoc]

I noticed a wasp come and visit while I was inspecting. Seemed big too.
Is that normal this time of year?

It's normal for queen wasps to come out of hibernation in the spring to found new colonies.

 

[pargyle]

I noticed a wasp come and visit while I was inspecting. Seemed big too.
Is that normal this time of year?

Yes ... queen wasp looking for somewhere to start a nest - I've already seen a couple that have come out of hibernation in this warm spell. I also saw the biggest queen bumble I have ever seen crawl across the bonnet of my car yesterday, Before I could get a photo she flew off but she really was a monster.

 

[beeno]

Before the cold spell I had about 30 buff-tailed bumble bees all over the lawns. Can't remember seeing that many before. Hope it's not a bad omen that I will be inundated with them!

 

[Erichalfbee]

How would you be inundated?
What would an inundation of bumblebees do?